The Hunters of Artemis
by notaflower
Summary: what happened to Thalia during the time between the third and fifth books? read this to be thrown into a crazy adventure of shitty names and lesbian crushes. you have been warned.
1. Chapter 1

takes place during the end of The Titans Curse

The noise of the Olympian party was distracting, but not enough to tear my mind off of the recent battle. All I could see was Luke's broken corpse as he lay in the rocks. Every instinct told me that he had to be dead but I had a strange inkling, a weird feeling that he was still alive. That some magic was sustaining him. As much as I dreaded it, I knew that Luke was alive, and the only thing I could picture now was the swift kick that sent him off the cliff. But that didn't count as betrayal, _Luke_ was the evil one. At least, that's what I had reassured myself.

"Thalia."

Artemis's voice startled me out of my daydreaming. She was standing only a few feet away from me and looking upon me sympathetically. I straitened my spine and plastered a confident look on my face. It felt weird to be taller than a goddess but Artemis's eyes betrayed the look of a twelve-year-old, immortality and wisdom shone in her moon-gray irises.

"Yes lady Artemis." I answered. Artemis smiled warmly. "Welcome to the hunt young maiden. I want to warn you that we will be hunting many ancient monsters for the next while. I wish you to be prepared."

"I'm honored." I said with a small bow of my head. "But I _am_ ready. I've faced many monsters." Artemis gave a smile that could have been sad. "Prepare to leave soon." She said "There is little time to waste." I nodded and she wandered off.

I turned and almost ran into a different hunter. Her eyes grew wide with alarm and she stumbled back a couple of steps. "Oh, sorry" I apologized. The girl's cheeks shone a bright red and she backed into the crowd. "Okay" I said, secretly hoping all the hunters weren't as strange as that.

I mingled with minor godlings and nymphs for a dozen more minutes. Half-way through _kill the DJ_ by Green Day, I heard Artemis's voice. _"_ _Hunters"_ it said. I didn't know how I could hear it over the Olympian party, I wasn't sure if it spoke in my mind or if Artemis simply had the ability to drown out all the other noise so that we could hear her or something. I made my way to her throne where she was seated along with a dozen other hunters. As a couple more joined us, Artemis cleared her throat. "We have been assigned to hunt many dangerous creatures hunters." Artemis warned. "Hardship approaches." The hunters muttered grimly amongst themselves. A fire glinted in Artemis's eyes. "We will start right away. But first, I must officially welcome Thalia Grace as the lead huntress. Zoë Nightshade has finally retired into the stars." I blushed as the attention shifted to me, but there were still stifled tears, I could tell, on behalf of Zoë, who had sacrificed her life to save Artemis and my friend, Annabeth.

"But we must not waste any more time than we have already." Stated Artemis, jolting us out of our grief. She stood and we filed in behind her. My heart swelled with honor as I stepped forward directly beside Lady Artemis herself and led the hunters away from the party and down the mountain. We crossed a bridge leading across the chasm and I held my breath the whole way through. I wanted to make a good first impression on the hunters and I figured screaming and flailing and falling off of cliffs would not be in the list of things they wanted to see from their new lieutenant.

We reached the twin elevator doors that would lead back down to the Empire State building, Manhattan. New York. As we descended, I tried not to punch someone. They honestly cold have found better elevator tunes than _. I could sense the awkward annoyance with the hunters as they chatted tensely amongst each other. I turned to Artemis. "Where will we go first?" I asked her nervously. I knew that Artemis liked mountains. Mountains were usually high. _High_ was not my favorite word.

Artemis breathed deeply. We must travel north a small bit, to Canada." She said. "Okay." I said, I didn't think the mountains in Canada were that big. Then again, I'd never been to Canada. Artemis spoke again "I believe we will be in the Maritimes. I have sensed a great being stirring there and would like to investigate. And possibly destroy it." I gulped

"What exactly is this monster called?" I asked. Artemis's voice deepened "Cynolycus. Sometimes called Crocotta."

I was about to ask what kind of shitty names those were when a pleasant _ding_ sounded in my ears. We had reached ground level.

The silver doors slid open into the large lobby of the Empire State. We padded across carpet and passed the person at the desk. The only acknowledgement he gave us was a small glance over the top of his magazine. With a shock, I realized his magazine had a nude photo, a female model, on the page he was reading. I gasped and recoiled. But not before I saw the same girl I had run into earlier glance at it and _blush!_ She tore herself away and we pushed outside.

Slightly disturbed, I followed Artemis into the night air and she whistled the perfect taxicab whistle. For a second nothing happened. Then, at least thirty wolves, all of them as pure white as fresh snowfall. Artemis took my hand and led me towards a wolf. I caught my breath at the sheer beauty of it. Light, but slightly dangerous gray eyes stood out amongst the sheer white pelt. I saw the hunters climb onto the wolves as if they were under-sized horses. With caution, I did the same.

"Usually, we do not ride our wolves, today however, we are in a hurry and I am anxious to be away from this filthy city." Explained Artemis. I muttered my agreement. Ever since being transformed into a pine, I felt a strong connection to nature.

A pedestrian walked past us, cutting in front of a couple of wolves who growled menacingly. Artemis held out her hand gently towards the canines. Immediately, they quieted down and pattered to her side. As soon as the rest of the hunters had mounted the wolves, they darted forward. Then something weird happened. The moonlight seemed to absorb into us. In a flash of silver light and a twisting sensation, we had vanished into morning mist.


	2. Chapter II

Chapter II

We reappeared in the middle of the woods. It was still pitch-black but the stars shone brightly above our heads. I could clearly see Zoë Nightshade with her bow drawn, ready to chase monsters across the sky. A thorn felt like it was being ripped from my chest at the memory of the former lead huntress. Her memory only made me more determined not to screw up, to honor her by being the best hunter in history.

The hunters slid of their wolves and you could see the tension slip away from their shoulders. They were in their home turf now. I jumped off my steed, my black combat boots crunching on dried leaves and pine needles. Just thinking of pine needles sent shivers down my spine. I had once _been_ partly pine needles. It was a disturbing thought. The memories of my time as a tree were still fuzzy. All I could grasp was a peaceful feeling of gently swaying in the breeze. I was torn from my thoughts by the Artemis as she brushed by me. I found my place at her side and took in the full view of where we were.

I was looking down from a small mountain. Below us stood a small country-side road and beyond that was a curling river dotted with sand bars that had formed into small islands. Past _that_ was dotted farmland as far as I could see.

I looked at Artemis. She seemed pleased to be away from New York City and back in the wilderness almost more than her hunters. Her wizened face was appearing younger and more blissful every heart-beat we stood there.

I too was glad that I got to breathe in the crisp night air.

"We will set up camp here." Decided Artemis. The hunters pulled off back packs that I hadn't noticed before. I realized they probably had the same magic qualities as their bows. I remembered from my quest that Bianca and Zoë's bows had simply appeared when they wished them to.

Artemis held out a pack. "There are many useful things stored in this pack." She explained. "Take a look through it when you have the chance. Although I suggest sleep tonight. We begin our search as soon as my brother Apollo wakes."

I knew that that meant first thing in the morning.

She rummaged through the front pocket of my new back pack and brought out a small triangle of silver cloth, no bigger than my hand. She threw it onto the ground with a slight spin. I only had a second to be confused before a full-size tent sprang up from the ground.

I stumbled back in surprise. A small smile tugged at the corners of Artemis's mouth. "This contains air conditioning as well as heating, even a buffet table. It sleep's four and has extra sleeping bags inside. Anything you put in there will collapse along with the rest of the tent. As long as it is no bigger than a couple square feet of course, when you want it too close back up, simply say _acteon_." As she said it, the tent folded back to a slip of cloth. She bent gracefully to pick it up and handed it back to me. "It will come in handy greatly" she promised

I took it gratefully, along with my pack. I slung it over my shoulder. After a couple of moments, it faded and the weight vanished. Pleased, I lifted my gaze for a couple of seconds to find tents popping up all through the clearing. I trained my gaze to the silver triangle in my hand, then, I flung it onto the ground and stepped back as my tent sprang up in front of me. I zipped open the door and ducked inside.

I almost fell back out.

The whole tent glowed silver, as if the moonlight was reflected off of the material. To my left, there was a curtain closing off one half of the tent. To my right was an open room. Against one side was a counter, I guessed this was the buffet table though I wasn't yet sure how it would work. There were hanging bookshelves, made of the same silver material as the tent all over the place. I spotted several pull-out inflatable chairs tucked into the walls. I figured there were probably more cool stuff all over the place but I was too tired to explore thoroughly now. I went to pull my pack off my shoulder and it slid onto the ground. Only a second after did I realize that the magic had indeed worked.

I smiled to myself.

Pulling through my bag, I found the same outfit that all the hunters wore as well as some silver pajamas.

I changed hastily and crawled into the closed off area that I had assumed was for sleeping. Sure enough, several sleeping mattresses were spread out on the ground. Each of them was covered y a sleeping bag. I saw small cubbies tucked away in the sides containing extra blankets and sleeping bags, as Artemis had said. Too tired to explore any further, I crawled into one of the sleeping bags and passed out.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter III

I woke to the sound of a conch horn. A sharp stab of homesickness made me think of camp half-blood, but I quickly shook the memory out of my head. I had a day of hunting to get to.

I opened my pack and stared at the hunter's outfit resting inside it. Then I rummaged past t and pulled out my usual punk-rock clothes. Finally, I decided to go with a mixture between the two. I pulled on my clothes and stepped out of the tent.

He clearing was starting to open up as tents snapped back into silk triangles. I stared at my own tent. " _Acteon_ " I said, and with a slipping noise of the material of the tent, it folded back into a piece of silvery fabric. I bent to pick it up and made my way to the rest of the hunters. Artemis was bent over a fire. She looked like she was cooking something. Then, the intoxicating smell reached me. _Bacon_. I stepped forward dreamily and Artemis looked up. The light of the fire was reflected off of her irises, giving them an unnatural glow.

"Good morning Thalia." She greeted. "We will begin our hunt today." I nodded and crouched down beside her so that I was at her eye level. "And one more thing," Artemis added. "You may need _this_." She pulled from over her shoulder, a silvery bow. It was long and graceful, more beautiful than any of the bows at camp.

"It will aid you with your archery until you have learned how to shoot properly." Artemis said. I blushed, slightly embarrassed on having to use training wheels. Nevertheless, I couldn't exactly turn it down. "Thank you." I said, trying to sound grateful.

Artemis smiled. "You do not wish to be held back as such." She guessed. I turned redder "not really." I said, grimacing. The look on Artemis's face turned sympathetic. "If you wish, you may use a proper bow, but shooting will not be as easy." She warned. "Give me a real one." I said. I was a pretty good archer and I knew that I would have plenty of opportunity to learn.

Artemis handed me a different bow. It looked exactly the same, but it seemed to hum in my hands. The weight was perfect. I pulled at the string experimentally. I leant back the perfect amount. I would be able to shot far with this. Pleased, I thanked Artemis more sincerely and she gave me half a dozen slices of bacon.

Truly happy for the first time since I had joined the hunters, I sat down on a rock and ate my bacon.

I was jolted from my bliss by Artemis who stood and sounded her conch horn again. "Hunters!" she shouted "Come, I must explain our threat." I gulped down the rest of my bacon, slung my bow over my shoulder and drew myself to Artemis's side. As soon as the rest of the hunters had assembled, Artemis started talking.

"The monster we seek is called _Crocotta_ or _Cynolycus._ He has been terrorizing this area, and more specifically, this _mountain,_ Mount Curry, for several months and it is time to put a stop to this practice. It hunts at night, but we will spend the days trying to find his lair. He is supposed to have the body of a stag, the neck of the fiercest lion, cloven hooves and a gaping maw, with only a bony ridge and no teeth. But this monster can devour you nonetheless. This is all I know as of now, but this monster is greater than many we have faced."

The hunters looked nervous and I had to force a confident expression onto my face. "Behind me." Ordered Artemis, and with that, she turned and plunged into the woods. I jogged after her, enjoying the feeling of the air rushing past my ears, and the way my feet flew over roots and stones naturally.

In no time, I had caught up to Artemis. Her expression was stony, but somewhat relaxed. She too seemed to be enjoying the sensation of flying through the woods. Gradually, she slowed, until she had stopped completely.

Artemis turned towards me. Do you sense anything Thalia?" she asked me. I blushed, I had been so focused on running through the woods, that I had forgotten the entire point of _why_ I was running through the woods.

I glanced around, searching for something to lead me somewhere. Suddenly, something caught my eye, a glint of gold in the midst of the green and brown of the woods. My eyes narrowed and Artemis looked in the direction I was focused on.

I picked my way through the undergrowth until I had reached it. To my delight, there was indeed a small clump of golden hairs snagged on a thorn bush. I heard a small gasp from Artemis. She looked at me approvingly. "I am impressed Thalia." She complimented. "You have found our trail."


End file.
